Puppet master: New Beginnings
by longshot07
Summary: Full Summery in first chapter. This is basically Puppet master with Gravity Falls mixed in.
1. Moving Day

**Summery: After years of being locked away and asleep, the puppets finally have new masters. But this time, they are a thirteen year old named Kate and her father, Kenneth. The puppets are no longer stranded in the walls of the Bodega Bay; now alive in a small town called Shadow Falls. But it seems with a pair of new masters and a new location, comes a new threat when strange monsters slowly begin to attack and mysteries arise in the town. Something is happening. Something big.**

* * *

Kate leaned her head against the window of the car as she watched buildings go passed her. She rubbed her dark brown hair with her hand as she closed her blue eyes and sighed. In the driver's seat of the car was her father; Kenneth. He was in his mid-thirties, but he had wild hair like Albert Einstein; only dark brown inside of grey. A pair of square glasses covered his olive green eyes and he had a bit of stubble on his chin. Kenneth looked at his daughter briefly before putting his attention back on the road. He stopped at a red light at the traffic behind and up ahead of them.

"Good thing we left before noon. Or we'd be stuck here for a while." Kenneth joked and laughed. "Right, Katie?"

Kate did not respond. She just continued staring out the window as the traffic light turned green. Kenneth tapped his nails against the steering wheel as he went forward. He tried to make conversation with his daughter.

"So our new house should be nice." He started. "Plenty of room, big backyard, big bedroom for yourself and I'll have a room for my experiments. We'll even have room for a dog."

Kenneth felt his heart sinking as he got no response from Kate.

"We'll be living out near the forest. We'll be close to town and have some fresh air."

Kate sighed quietly as she sat up and looked at her father with what could only be described as disappointment and confusion.

"I know we're going through a rough time, dad." She finally spoke since leaving Los Angeles. "But was moving really necessary?"

Kenneth kept his eyes on the road; taking an exit leading to the coast.

"I know it seems a bit much, sweetie." He admitted. "But I just noticed how for the past six years that you've been struggling at school ever since... since your mother..."

Kenneth struggled to finish the sentence. But Kate knew what he was trying to say.

"It's okay, dad. I know you're still upset about mom." She replied. "I miss her too."

Kenneth briefly looked at Kate as she hung her head down and played with the sleeves of her shirt. He took her hand and held it tight; making her look up.

"Don't worry. When we get to this house in Oregon, we're going to start fresh." He reassured.

Kate gave her father a small smile as he started talking about it. Kenneth made a turn onto the thankful empty road; talking about how good everything would be for a few minutes.

"We'll have big house with lots of room, you'll go to a nice school and make lots of friends, maybe we'll even buy a new-"

Kate and Kenneth heard a loud bang in front of them as the car began to slow down. Kenneth quickly but gently pulled over to the side of the road as steam came out from under the hood. Kate raised an eyebrow as her father sighed in frustration.

"Car." He finished his sentence.

Kate and Kenneth quickly got out of the car to check and see what was wrong. Kenneth opened the hood and coughed as smoke came out of the radiator. Kate watched as he tried to figure out what was wrong with it.

"What's your diagnosis?" She asked.

"Well, I'm a scientist; not a mechanic." He rubbed his head in thought. "But I think the radiator over heated."

Kenneth sighed and went through his pocket.

"I'll have to call road side service." He brought out his phone.

Kate put her hands on her pockets as she turned around. She raised a brow as she spotted what looked like buildings in the distance. She tilted her head curiously; thinking that there might be people who could help.

"Hey, dad; I think there's a hotel over there. You want me to go over and get help?" Kate asked.

Kenneth was already on his phone. Kate could hear him sigh in frustration as he got what he called a phone robot.

"Dad?" Kate repeated.

"Yes, that's a good idea sweetie; go ahead. Yes hello!"

Kenneth began speaking into the phone. Kate just shrugged and began making her way to the building; hearing her dad making rather angry noises into his phone. Kate made it to the building, going past a sign that read Bodega bay inn. The name seemed familiar to her, but she dismissed it. She looked up at the tall structure; thinking it might be a resort of some kind. She walked over to the door and pushed it open. Kate poked her head through and looked for any signs of life.

"Hello?" She called out as she walked in. "Is anyone here? My dads' car broke down and we need help!"

Kate did not get any response. It occurred to her that this place might be abandoned. She looked back at the front entrance; knowing her dad was going to be on the phone for a while. Maybe she could explore a bit. Kate flinched when she heard footsteps. She looked up when she heard them coming from the next floor up.

"Someone is here." She thought.

Kate looked around for a way upstairs. She spotted one of those old fashioned elevators. She looked inside and noticed that the buttons were lit; meaning that it still functioned. She took the level where she thought the noise was coming from. Kate got out of the lift and started looking around. She quickly turned and noticed something going around the corner of the hallway. Impulsively, she ran after it. But she lost track of it. Kate put her hands on her hips as she walked down the hallway. She noticed that one of the doors along it was open. Curiosity getting the better of her, she looked inside.

She poked her head into the room and looked around. Everything a hotel room would have was in there. A bed, a bathroom and some other things like a cupboard and a window; only covered in cobwebs. But something caught her attention. In the middle of the room was a rather large trunk. She tilted her head as she took a look. Kate noticed that there was a note attached to it. She pulled it off and read it out loud.

"Whoever finds this trunk, please take it and care for it. For it is what holds my most precious belongings.- A Toulon."

Kate blinked as she read the note a few more times. She looked at the trunk with curiosity of what could be inside it. She wasn't sure if she could take it. But the note attached seemed legitimate. And something about the trunk seemed alluring; as if it was silently telling her to take it. With all the strength she could gather in her short adolescent body, she grabbed the handle of the trunk and pulled it out of the room, down the hall and into the lift with her; grunting as she did so.

Miraculously, she managed to lift the trunk a few inches off the ground and carried it back to the car. She quietly made her way back to the car as he father was still on the phone. Kate sneaked past behind her father and made to the back of the car as continued talking.

"Yes, my radiator over heated and now me and my daughter are stuck here." He answered into the phone before being asked a question. "Where? Hang on."

Kate quickly put the trunk down out of her father's sight as he turned around to face her.

"Kate, where are we?" Kenneth asked in confusion.

"The Bodega bay inn." She answered with her hands in her pockets.

Kenneth nodded and went back on the phone. Kate quickly opened the back of the car and lifted the trunk into while her dad was distracted. She pushed it in beside her suitcase and dads' suitcase. With a push, the back of the car went down with a slam. Kenneth flinched and turned with wide eyes as Kate looked back at him.

"There was a bug on the trunk." She came up with an excuse.

Kenneth nodded and went back to the phone.

"Ok see you soon." He said goodbye before hanging up and leaning on the driver's door. "They said they'll be here in half an hour, so don't get too comfortable."

Kate nodded and leaned back against the door. The father and daughter noticed that the moving van was going past them. Looks like they were going to beat them to Oregon. Kate put her hand in her pocket and took out a packet of gum.

"Apple chew?" She offered to her father.

After half an hour later, road side service came and fixed the radiator; getting the pair back on the road. As they drove through towns and by buildings, Kate kept her head against the window. She thought of what her new home would be like. She thought of her mother and the day she disappeared. She thought of the trunk she found, and what could be inside it. She thought about the name of the town her father was taking her. Shadow Falls.


	2. The Trunk

"Katie, Kate. Sweetie."

Kate groaned as she felt her shoulder being poked repeatedly. She opened her eyes to see her father smiling warmly at her.

"We made it." He said as he pointed to the front window of the car.

Kate turned her head and looked out the window. She raised her brow as she saw a driveway leading down to a large two storey house surrounded by forest. From where she could see, the house looked rather old and rickety; with old looking windows and wooden frames, even a few large cobwebs. Kate got out of the car as her father got out and stretched out; glad to finally be out of the car as he took a breath of the fresh air.

"Fresh air, nice and quiet. This house is perfect." He said with his hands on his hips and a smile on his face. "We practically got a whole forest as a backyard!"

"Yay, we've probably got bears as neighbours." Kate spoke with a hint of sarcasm.

Kenneth shrugged as he looked at his unimpressed daughter.

"Well I've checked and they are a few sightings outside the area." He spoke rather casually before smiling mischievously. "And the occasional cougar."

Kate went wide eyed and gave her father a shocked stare.

"There're cougars here!?" She questioned with a shocked tone as she looked around.

Kenneth put his hand over his mouth as he laughed. Kate looked at him with a raised brow.

"Don't worry kiddo. There aren't any cougars here." He reassured as ruffled up his daughters hair; much to her annoyance. "But don't go into the woods by yourself. There might rattlesnakes and black bears."

"So I was right about the bears." Kate said as she put her fist in her palm.

Kenneth shrugged as she heard a car horn honk from behind. The father and daughter turned around to see the moving van coming up to them towards the driveway. They both quickly got out of the way as it went past the car and stopped in front of the house. Kenneth walked up as the driver got out.

"Didn't think you were gonna get here first. Me and Dave drove right past ya back in California." The driver said as he jumped out of the van.

"Yeah. Radiator over heated, but we called road side service and got back on the road." He explained before getting to business. "Alright, shall I help you with everything in the truck?"

"We'll get it all out first and then you can tell us where you want it. Dave, help me with the TV!"

Kate walked up to her father as she watched the moving men lift up the heavy appliance from the truck and put it out on the ground outside. Kenneth looked at her and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Say, Kate; how about you go inside and pick out what room you want to be yours? If I were you, I'd pick the attic." He suggested as he handed her the key.

Kate just shrugged before responding.

"Okay." She spoke casually as she took the key.

Kate opened the front door and made her way inside. She poked her head through the doorframe as she looked at the interior of the house. It looked okay. Probably needed a good clean with all the dust lying on floor and the wallpaper looking a bit faded. Kate took a step forward and spotted the stairs leading to the second floor, and presumably the attic. She made her way up and found another set of stars; only these ones were leading up to a door. She walked up to it and checked if it was locked. Kate froze a bit when the door opened as she touched the door handle.

"Maybe dad bought a haunted house." She thought as she peeked through the door.

She thought the attic was going to look rather gritty and dust ridden. But to her surprise, it seemed quite spaced out yet cosy. There were a few power points and a Television plug in at least two corners, so she could have all her gaming stuff up here and her TV. It had a nice Look with the inside of the arched roof being visible on the ceiling with no visible holes and it had a nice window in the corner that could let in some sunlight. Kate nodded in approval as she looked around.

"Not bad." She thought out loud. "Got some space for my TV and PlayStation. Can probably put my desk in the corner with my arts and crafts. Enough wall space for my posters and the bed can sit right next to the window."

Kate put her hands on her hips as she imaged the room when it was personalised to her liking. But another thought quickly came to mind.

"The trunk!" She gasped as she remembered what she found in the inn.

Kate ran to the window to see her dad helping the moving men bring heavy furniture inside the house. She took the opportunity to run outside and try to figure out how to get it in without her father noticing. Kate ran out of the house; almost running into her dad. She quickly avoided him and the couch he was carrying with one of the moving men.

"Did you pick a room, kiddo?" He asked as he struggled to lift the heavy furniture.

"Yeah, I love it! Thanks dad!" She greeted with a wave before running to the car.

As her father and the couch went through the front door, Kate opened the back of the car to find the mysterious trunk among her and her father's luggage. Kate suddenly remembered how heavy it was when she tried to get it out of the car; thinking it was somehow heavier than it was when she found it.

"Need any help with that?"

Kate flinched and let out a yelp sound when heard someone speak to her. She quickly turned to see the other moving man standing there and not her father; making her take a relived breath.

"Uh yeah, I just want to take this into the attic." Kate explained as she still struggled with the trunk.

"Oh I'll take it if you like." The man said kindly.

Kate gave up on lifting the trunk herself and just took one end while the moving man took the other. She quickly made sure her father could not see what they were doing. He was too busy trying not to drop the furniture to notice what she and Dave were doing. Kate and the moving man made it up both sets of stairs and into the attic. With a sigh of exhaustion, they both put the trunk down and caught a breath each.

"Geez kid, what's in that thing?" The moving man asked with an exhale.

Kate wasn't really sure how to answer because she really had no idea what was in there. But she quickly made up an excuse.

"Umm... Just some old China that belonged to my great grandma." Kate spoke as she took a breather. "She went to a lot of souvenir stores in her travels."

The moving guy just let out an exhausted sound before straightening himself out. Kate quickly dug into her pocket and took out five dollars.

"Thanks for the help, I really appreciate it." She said as she handed him the money.

"It wasn't a problem." He said as he took the money. "Now back to the other stuff."

Kate watched as the moving man turned and left the attic to get back to work. When he was gone, Kate turned her attention to the old and worn trunk.

"What is in here?" She asked herself.

Kate got down on her knees and tried to open it with her bare hands. But to her frustration, it seemed that the trunk was locked.

"Shit." She cursed under her breath.

Kate just looked at the old lock for a second as she thought of how she could get it open. Maybe a hammer? Probably not the best idea. Maybe... Maybe some strong acid? Kate's father probably packed some to use with his experiments; most of the stuff he does involved different types of metal and its properties. But she would not be able to find any until everything was unpacked.

"Kate!"

Kate jumped a bit as she heard her name being yelled out rather loudly. She turned towards the stairs as she heard her father call out.

"Could you help me and these guys with the boxes!?" He called out for help.

Kate got up off the floor and ran down the stairs to help out. Looks like whatever was in the trunk had to wait.

After getting everything in the house and paying the moving men for their work, Kenneth and Kate moved on to the 'fun' part of moving house. Cleaning. Three hours of mopping, dusting, vacuuming and clearing cobwebs later into the afternoon, Kenneth took a breath as he wiped the hard-work sweat off his forehead; admiring the newfound cleanliness of the house.

"Looks like we just bought it, huh Kate?" He spoke to his daughter.

Kate tried to reply but all she could get out was a massive sneeze caused by dust.

"Bless you." Kenneth quickly said.

"Did we have to do this all in one day? I mean we had all summer to do it." Kate reminded as she wiped her nose with her sleeve.

"It's best to get it out of the way so we don't have to do it later." Kenneth replied with a smile. "And besides. When we get you enrolled in school, we won't have to worry about putting stuff away or sorting out the furniture."

Kate just shrugged and nodded. But she just remembered that she had nothing to eat all day when a very faint growl came from her stomach. She made a slight discomforted sound as she played with her shirt.

"Hungry?" Kenneth asked; just realising it too.

"A little." Kate answered back.

"Well I don't think we have anything left from the trip." Kenneth thought out loud. "Guess I'll have to go into town and buy some food. You wanna come, kiddo?"

Kate was about to reply when she realised something. If she stayed behind, she could use something from her father's experiments to open the trunk. Kate quickly thought up an excuse.

"Yeah, I'd love to, dad." Kate spoke as she rubbed her eye out of tiredness. "But I'm kinda tired. I think I should stay and mind the fort."

Kenneth raised a brow for a moment before shrugging.

"Okay." He went to get his wallet and car keys. "Want me to get anything in particular for dinner?"

"How about pizza?" Kate asked rather excitedly.

"Sure; I don't really feel like cooking." Kenneth quickly faced Kate again before walking to the door. "Now keep the door locked while I'm gone and don't answer to any strangers. But if you do go outside, don't wonder off into the woods. Got it?"

"Got it, dad." Kate sighed and rolled her eyes the other way.

Kate watched as Kenneth was about to leave, but he quickly turned around like he forgot something.

"One more thing." He said rather unemotionally.

Kate watched as her father's unemotional face quickly turned into a loving smile before he reached down and ruffled up his daughters hair; making her swat at him rather playfully.

"Love ya, hazelnut."

Kate smiled a little as she heard her nickname.

"Love you too, dad." She replied as Kenneth walked out the door to the car.

Kate locked the wire door as she heard the car start up; seeing it leave the drive way. Kate loved her father. But she knew how hard everything became for him and herself after her mother's disappearance. She never forgot that day he came home; all covered in bruises and cuts; crying his eyes out. She remembered how heartbroken he sounded as he told her "Mommy went somewhere" and he "didn't know if she was coming back." Kate began to stare into space as she remembered how she reacted. Confused. Angry. Upset. She did not realise she was gripping the wire door so tightly as she kept thinking about it.

Kate quickly realised what she was thinking and snapped out of it. She remembered what she wanted to do. Kate quickly ran to the back of the house; smiling a bit as she found her father's lab equipment in a few different boxes. She began to open them by smallest to largest; finding a large array of bottles and jars in the third box. Kate sorted through the bottles; going through vinegar, rubbing alcohol and other things until she found what she was looking for. Acid. Kate read the label on the small hand sized bottle and its warning; telling her not to come in contact with the liquid and saying what to do if she did. But Kate knew better. She was not going to be careless. With carefulness in mind, Kate began her way back upstairs with the bottle; holding on tightly but carefully as she made her way to the attic.

Kate took an exhale of relief as she made it towards the trunk; getting down on her knees and gently putting the bottle down on the flat surface of the floor. Kate took a look at the locks again; thinking the acid would eat through in ten seconds at least.

"Alright, here we go." She thought to herself as she opened the bottle.

Kate slowly opened the bottle and lifted the lid that had a liquid dropper attached to it. She carefully lifted the dropper over one of the locks on the trunk; hearing a sizzling sound as a line of steam came off the lock. She repeated the process with the other lock and put the lid back on the bottle as she waited. Kate heard a faint sound of a suitcase popping open slightly; telling her the acid worked. Kate smiled a bit as she wandered what might be inside the trunk. Maybe it was a large amount of money, or something of great value. Kate gently placed her hands on the trunk and pushed it open; smiling as she did so.

But Kate's smile turned into a look of confusion as she saw was really inside.

"What?" She asked herself as she reached inside.

Kate blinked as she looked at what she grabbed and gently picked it up.

A puppet.

Kate looked at the one she held and some of the others inside the trunk. They looked different from each other, but none of them had strings on them. The one she had in her hand had a white skull looking face with black eye sockets and long white hair. It was wearing all black with a fedora, trench coat and undershirt with black pants and shoes. But one thing that confused her was the blade and hook it had for hands.

Kate looked at the rest of the puppets. One looked like a jester from medieval times with a red, purple and gold outfit with a hat and gold boots. Its' face was spilt in three parts with a rather sad look on its face.

Another was a grinning cowboy with six arms; with six guns in six holsters.

The one next to it was a rather large looking guy with big hands. But its' head was a bit small and pointed; rather pinheaded one might say.

Another looked a bit like a solider, but it had a drill on top of its' head.

Then there was a rather creepy looking one with a robotic looking face like a WWII helmet and teeth that looked like bullets. It was wearing a light brown coat and its right hand was replaced with some kind of metal tube.

Kate just blinked in confusion at the odd looking dolls.

"Who the hell owned these?" She asked out loud as she reached for the blade and hook handed puppet.

Kate looked over the pale puppet and its features. She kept thinking she should be disappointed, but she was more confused than anything. She liked how they looked with the slight creep factor. But who would make puppets like this, and why no strings?

As Kate looked at the pale puppet, something else in the trunk caught her attention. In a small compartment of the trunk, a small bottle of glowing green liquid sat there. Kate gently grabbed the bottle and looked at it; thinking it looked like some kind of radioactive soda. Kate put the puppet and the bottle down to see what else was inside the trunk. Aside from the puppets, there was a half empty bottle of the green stuff, an old looking journal and a small wooden case. Curious about its contents, Kate opened the small case; raising a brow when she found a syringe and needle. Increasing her curiosity, Kate decided to have a look at the journal; thinking it might tell about these odd puppets and maybe about the stuff in the bottles. Kate opened the first page and read the first few lines.

"My name is Andre Toulon. Within this journal, I will document all my findings and events involving my puppets. By making which is inanimate, animate, the metaphysical ramifications of this stirs my soul to be a God, the creator of life."

Kate blinked at making which is inanimate, animate. She turned to another page and read what was on that.

"Today, I gave them life using the ancient Egyptian rites of after-life. I love them like all my other children, like my other puppets they mirror the soul of their master and with me they are harmless, but I fear what they are capable of if placed in the wrong hands."

This only just made Kate more confused. Were these puppet supposed to alive? If so, why were they not moving? Kate skipped to another page; this time it showed what exactly the needles were for. It was a drawing showing a needle being used on one of the puppets; explaining how to do it and where on each puppet. Kate looked back and forth between the syringe and the puppet in the black coat; wandering if this was real or not. Making a rather intrigued sound, Kate decided to try it.

Kate opened a bottle of the green liquid and picked up the syringe. She placed the needle in the bottle and took a bit of the contents inside. Kate looked at each puppet; thinking of what would happen if one of them actually came alive. She picked up the pale one with the blade and hook; looking at the journal to see where the needle was meant to go. The pages showed an ejection point in the back of the puppets neck. Kate carefully positioned the needle and pushed down the plunger of the syringe. When the green liquid was half empty, Kate pulled out the needle and put it aside. She placed the puppet on the floor and waited for what the journal said would happen. Kate watched and waited...

But nothing happened.

Kate frowned as she stared at the motionless puppet; thinking she ripped herself off.

"Well this is a fucking let down." She swore under her breath.

Just then, Kate looked up as she heard the sound of a car pulling up. She quickly got up and gasped when she saw her dad pulling up in the driveway; realising she still had the acid.

"Shit!" She quickly grabbed the bottle and ran out of the attic; forgetting about the puppets.

Kate quickly ran to her dads' things as she heard the sound of the car turning off. She gently but quickly put the acid back and closed the box like she never touched it. Kate managed to run back to the living when she heard her dad knock at the door. Kate let out an exhale before she unlocked it and answered. She opened the door to see her father standing there with a big grin on his face and two boxes of pizza in one hand. He put his free hand over his mouth and made a trumpet noise.

"It's the herald of a new snack dawn!" Kenneth jokingly announced.

Kate let out a small chuckle as her father said there were still groceries in the car. After getting everything out and putting it away, Kenneth and Kate sat down to eat. Kate took a bite from a slice of the pepperoni pizza while Kenneth had a slice of super-supreme.

"So did anything happen while I was out?" Kenneth asked with a mouth full of pizza.

"Nothing at all." Kate answered before taking a bite of her pizza.

Kate pondered on something as she enjoyed her pizza. She was certainly disappointed with those supposedly living puppets she picked up. But something about the journal bothered her. The way it described giving life to inanimate objects with magic. It sounded like something from a story book.

"Dad, can I ask you a question?" Kate decided to ask her dad, even though he's a scientist and should not believe in that stuff.

Kenneth finished his pizza slice and looked at his daughter.

"You just did." He said calmly.

Kate raised a brow at him before he started laughing.

"Just kidding, kiddo. What's on your mind?"

Kate thought about it before she asked.

"I heard this story the other day about this guy who could make things like dolls and puppets come to life. Can stuff like that actually happen?" She asked of her father.

Kenneth tapped his finger against the table as he thought of how to answer the odd question.

"Well, you said it's a story so I don't think it's possible; unless these dolls and puppets you speak of are mechanical." He answered with his own opinion. "But hey; I may be a man of scientist but stranger things can happen."

Kate just made an hmmm sound before taking another slice of pizza. Unknown to Kate, something was happening in the attic. Something that she or her father would not expect or be prepared for. Something that would change everything in their lives.


	3. Up and About

Kate rubbed her towel against her head as she stepped out of the bathroom; drying her hair from the lukewarm shower.

"Least the water wasn't brown." She thought to herself as she threw her towel over her shoulder.

In her warm red pyjamas, Kate made her way downstairs to grab her sleeping bag. Kenneth was setting up the tv in the living room when he noticed his daughter walk in.

"Going to bed already?" He asked; rather surprised.

Kate usually stayed up pretty late. So Kenneth found this a bit unusual.

"I might stay up a little bit; but I'm a little tired." Kate explained as she picked up her sleeping bag.

Kenneth looked at Kate with a slightly guilty looking face as she picked up the sleeping bag.

"Sorry I couldn't set up your bed straight away." He apologised; thinking his daughter was going to be too uncomfortable to sleep after their long drive.

"That's okay, dad. I've kinda gotten used to sleeping like this." Kate said as she hung it over her shoulder. "But can we set up my desk tomorrow? I feel the need to make something."

"You haven't made any new jewellery or drawn anything yet?" Kenneth asked as he tuned in the tv.

"Well I can't do it on the floor. I need a proper working space before I can set up my tools and pencils."

Kenneth was about to say something when the tv finally showed something on the screen. He smiled at what looked like an old black and white horror movie.

"Alright; I got her working! And Invasion of the body snatchers is on!" He said excitedly as he jumped on the couch. "You sure you don't wanna join me?"

"That's okay, dad. Enjoy you're black and white horror flick. G'night!" Kate waved goodnight before heading back to her new room.

Kenneth just shrugged and turned up the volume a little bit before getting comfortable.

Kate made it to her room and began setting up her sleeping bag on the wooden floor. She pulled off the tap holding it in a roll and rolled it out next to a lamp with her backpack. As Kate flattened it out, she glanced at the trunk with the puppets and strange objects. But she stopped when she noticed something. The puppet with the knife and hook was sitting up against the open trunk and the syringe. Kate crawled over confused. She could have sworn she left it laying on the floor when her dad came back from town. Kate just shrugged it off and gently put the puppet back in the trunk with the other strange puppets along with the syringe and the bottles of the green liquid; closing it slightly. She was tired, so maybe she just imagined it.

"Maybe they might be worth something at a pawn shop." She thought as she went to bed.

Kate crawled into her sleeping bag and turned off the lamp beside her; leaving herself in the dark.

After a few minutes, Kate was finally feeling like she would fall asleep. But as her eyes began to feel heavy, she heard something.

Kates' eyes shoot open as she heard what sounded like footsteps. At first she thought they might have been her dad. But they sounded smaller. And closer. Kate quickly sat up; grabbing her phone and turning on the built in flashlight. Kate looked all over the room for whatever made the sound. But there was nothing in the room besides herself. Kate thought that maybe it was something outside. But she pointed her light to the trunk by coincidence. And there was something strange.

The pale puppet was sitting against it with its head facing the door. Kate muttered 'what' to herself as she crawled over to the hook and blade handed puppet; knowing for sure that she put it back in the trunk before she went to bed.

"I swear I put you back in the trunk." She spoke to herself as she picked it up.

Kate began looking at the puppet; trying to figure out how it got out of the trunk. Before something happened.

As Kate held the puppet in her hand; she noticed that it did not feel still. In fact... it felt like it was moving a bit.

Kate's suspicions were confirmed when the puppet suddenly turned its head around with points popped out of its eye sockets.

"GAHHH!" Kate screamed as she dropped the puppet and backed away with wide eyes.

Kate began breathing heavily as she pointed her light at the now moving puppet. She watched as it slowly got up off the floor; making rather pained noises as it did so. When it was standing up, it looked itself over with confused sounds. Kate felt her heart skip a beat when it turned to look at her and began coming towards her.

"S-stay back! I'm warning you!" She warned; even though the threat was rather empty.

Kate stayed cautious even when the puppet stopped in its place. The puppet made a confused noise before turning to the trunk behind it. It quickly moved over and placed its blade and hook over the leather. It then moved to the opening of the trunk and placed itself in between the opening. Kate heard it make some struggling noises. She slowly crawled over with her light to see what it was doing. She pointed her light at the gap the puppet jammed itself in; watching it push its leg and back against the lid. Kate kept watching as it continued to push; sounding like it was struggling as it grunted. It took her a few seconds to realise that it was trying to open the trunk. But why? Kate was sure that it was a bad idea. But she put her phone down and opened the trunk for the struggling puppet; hoping it was not going to lead to death by potentially evil puppets. The puppet took a step and looked at the inside of the trunk for a full minute. It slowly reached with its hook hand as it made a quiet noise. Kate blinked as she listened. She found it confusing, but for some reason it sounded sad. Kate flinched as the puppet turned back to her and pointed its knife at her. It made a noise as it pointed to the other puppets in the trunk. Kate took a few seconds to think of what it wanted.

"You... you want me to bring out your friends?" She asked with unnerved stutter.

The pale puppet nodded. Kate shook a bit as she took out the other puppets one by one and layed them on the floor. The blade and hook handed puppet looked at each of them before pointing at the inside of the trunk; making a slightly demanding noise. Kate looked at where it was pointing at. It was the case with the syringe and needle. Kate quickly realised what the puppet wanted. She reached for the case and took out its contents.

"Okay, I'll wake up your friends. Just don't kill me." She said as she took a bottle of the green liquid and filled the syringe.

The hook handed puppet just watched as Kate picked up the journal to see where the needle went in each puppet. Then she picked up each puppet one by one. Starting with the big one with the small head, then the six armed cowboy, then the drill headed one, then the jester, and last but not least the one with the metal tube for its right hand. After injecting the green liquid in them, Kate stood back and waited. The pale puppet watched with anticipation anxiety as he waited for his friends to move. After a few seconds, one by one they all moved a bit. Kate watched nervously as the small headed puppet sat up and stretched its hands out; showing off its giant hands.

"Please tell me I'm dreaming." Kate thought to herself as all the puppets came to life.

After a few minutes, all the puppets were now up and moving; even making a few noises here and there. Kate watched as they all made odd noises to each other; like they were communicating. The jester puppet stumbled to the pale puppet and it must have asked what was happening. Because the hook and blade handed puppet pointed at Kate. Before Kate could say a word, the puppets all turned to her; making her freeze in her spot.

"Oh god. I'm gonna die." She thought as nervous sweat emerged from her forehead; thinking they were going to kill her.

But to her surprise, They didn't really do anything. The pale puppet just looked up at her and crossed his arms into an x salute. Kate's fear turned into confusion as the rest did the same.

"Uhhhhh." Was all Kate could get to come out of her mouth.

Just then, the small headed went back into the trunk and grabbed something. Kate watched as it quickly went to her with the journal; putting it down and going through its pages. It stopped at pages with pictures, diagrams and text before handing it to Kate.

Kate carefully took the journal from the small headed puppet; grabbing her phone so she could see the pages. It was a drawing of the pale puppet with the weapon hands; showing how it worked and what it was meant to do. She looked at the text above.

"Blade"

Kate blinked as she realised that must been his name. She looked at the real one in front of her to compare.

"So, your name is Blade?" She asked.

Blade just nodded and lifted his hat with his hook. Kate turned to another page; wondering if the other puppets had names. She found a page about the drill headed puppet; looking at the text at the top of the page.

"Tunneller"

Next was the page of the puppet with the big hands.

"Pinhead"

Then the six armed cowboy.

"Six shooter"

Then the jester.

"Jester"

Then the scary looking one with the helmet.

"Torch"

Kate raised a brow at the name; thinking it was not as obvious as the others. Kate found a few more pages of other puppets, but they were not here with the ones that were in the trunk. Kate just put the journal aside; trying to comprehend what was happening right now. She already read the bit at the beginning about Andre Toulon. Whoever he was, Kate was not sure if he was a genius or a madman for creating something like this. Kate looked down at the puppets as they looked up at her; like they were waiting for her to say something.

"Ummmm... So can you all understand me?" She asked.

They all nodded along with little noises. Kate nodded back with a blank face.

"Right." She continued to speak. "I'm sure you all mean well and are grateful for bringing you to life and stuff. And you probably wanna do something. But I kind of need to sleep and make sure this isn't some kind of fever dream. So... Maybe just stand in that corner over there and I'll figure out what this is in the morning."

The living puppets looked at a corner on the room and walked over. As they did so, Jester looked back at Kate. The three panels that made up his face span around to make a happy expression. He held up his little arm and waved at Kate as if he were saying goodnight. Unsure what to do, Kate just smiled nervously and waved back before digging into her sleeping bag hoping the puppets were not staring right at her.

* * *

Blade glanced at the girl as she buried herself in her sleeping bag like a caterpillar. The pale puppet made a questionable sound.

 _"This is all too confusing."_ He thought to himself; finding the situation hard to comprehend.

Jester on the other hand was jumping up and down in pure joy; quietly so the girl could not hear.

 _"I can't believe it! Someone up there loves us!"_ The clown puppet danced around as he celebrated. _"At long last; we have another master!"_

 _"Hey you might wanna slow down, Jes."_ Six Shooter got the jumpy puppet to calm himself. _"We gotta make sure this kid is the right one."_

 _"So we have a stupid kid for a master now?"_ Torch questioned rather pessimistically and crudely. _"And she took us away from the hotel! What the hell!?"_

Pinhead climbed up to the window in the corner; trying to figure out where they were now.

 _"I don't really know. But I think we might be in some cabin in a forest somewhere."_ The small headed puppet guessed.

Blade tried to think about what was happening. But he gasped as something quickly came to him. If this kid took them from the hotel, then where was-

 _"Decapitron!"_ He ran to the trunk in a hurry.

Everyone watched as Blade felt around the trunk for a secret compartment. He continued to tap until he heard a hollow sound over the sign that read Toulon.

 _"Pinhead! Please come here!"_ Blade ordered with hast.

Pinhead hurried over and gently pulled out the sign; revealing a new draw inside. Blade and Pinhead looked inside to see another puppet. But this one was wearing a brown leather jacket and brown pants that were tucked into knee high boots; dark brown gloves on each hand. Its head looked like a dark blue, bald featureless humanoid head. Some other heads were inside with it. One that was gold and square with two machine gun turrets on the side and four metal antennas on top that were linked to a silver ball in the middle. One that looked very close to a robot with square eyes and a robotic mouth. Blade sighed in relief upon seeing the sleeping puppet.

 _"We must've put him in here before we went into rest."_ He assumed.

Torch just shook his head at the multi headed puppet; thinking it was pointless to have it here.

 _"I don't see why we still have him around. He's done nothing for however long we've been asleep."_ He spoke rather crudely.

 _"Decapitron is just as important as any of us, Torch. He helped us more times than we could ask for."_ Tunneller reminded; looking down at the sleeping puppet.

Jester quickly switched to his sad face as he looked at Decapitron; wishing he would just wake up even for a second.

 _"He hasn't been active ever since Rick died."_ The colourful puppet sadly recalled. _"It's like the soul within him just disappeared."_

Six shooter placed one hand on the puppets shoulder in reassurance.

 _"Maybe Andre finally moved on to heaven. If so, he's with Elsa now."_ The six armed cowboy tried to reassure his friend.

Jester just sighed sadly in response. Blade decided to put Decapitron away for now. They would be able to activate him anytime soon and the thought of it was just making everyone depressed. Blade pushed against the secret opening and sealed Decapitron away for the time being.

 _"Well, where ever we are now, we'll have to make the best of it."_ He said out loud. _"We'll get this girl to read the journal tomorrow so she can know what she has done and the responsibility she now has with us."_


End file.
